By David Gushee Follow David: @dpgushee Not long ago I received a communication from a person identifying himself as John Calvin, quoting Leviticus 20:13 to me, suggesting that this text resolves the LGBT issue. Dr. Calvin’s concern was already on…
The sins of Sodom (and Gibeah): The LGBT issue, part 9
By David Gushee Follow David: @dpgushee Traditionalist Christians on the LGBT issue argue that there can be no legitimate same-sex relationships because they are banned by the Bible. Thus even where traditionalists acknowledge the existence of enduring same-sex orientation, they…
How traditionalists connect the biblical dots: The LGBT Issue, part 8
By David Gushee Follow David: @dpgushee The essentials of the traditionalist reading of scripture on same-sex relationships can be rendered by this formula, though of course there are variations: Genesis 1-2 + Genesis 19 + Leviticus 18:22/20:13 + Judges 19…
Biblical inspiration, human interpretation: The LGBT issue, part 7
By David Gushee Follow David: @dpgushee The (Protestant) Bible has 66 books, 1,189 chapters and 31,273 verses, spoken, written and edited over more than a millennium, in three different languages, in multiple social settings, by dozens of authors, with the…
If this is where you get off the bus: The LGBT issue, part 6
By David Gushee Follow David: @dpgushee It should be clear by now that “the LGBT Issue” is by no means just one issue, and that its complexity requires a sufficiently complex response. Careful readers will see that my approach in…
If This is Where You Get Off the Bus: The LGBT Issue, part 6
By David Gushee Follow David: @dpgushee It should be clear by now that “the LGBT Issue” is by no means just one issue, and that its complexity requires a sufficiently complex response. Careful readers will see that my approach in…
Six options for the churches: The LGBT issue, part 5
By David Gushee Follow David: @dpgushee What is the posture that forgiven sinners in the church should have toward other forgiven sinners? Pope Francis rocked the Christian world with his response in a 2013 interview when he was asked about…
Gay Christians exist: The LGBT issue, part 4
By David Gushee Follow David: @dpgushee While some traditionalist voices still dispute it, more are willing to acknowledge that the LGBT community contains a sizable population of professing Christians. However one defines a Christian — by baptism, by stated personal commitment…
Change we can all support: The LGBT issue, part 3
By David Gushee Follow David: @dpgushee Last week I claimed that contemporary behavioral scientists and mental health experts have responded to research evidence, and the lives of LGBT people, by reconceptualizing human sexuality. I suggested that there is a fork…